Tag Archives: Malaysia

The history of humanity is a non-ceasing outburst of hatred towards those who religion is not your own. People are killed, whipped, burned to death and other forms of punishment because their religion was not that of other people. A Malaysian court has charged six Muslim men with sedition for parading a severed cow’s head to protest the construction of a new Hindu temple. They were part of a group that marched from a mosque to the Hindu temple in an effort to arouse public anger against Hindus.

According to their lawyer, the cow’s head was not meant as an offense to Hindus but to reflect the “stupidity” of the government. “If you llok at the Malay culture, the cow is synonymous with stupdity and not meant as an insult to religions.

I suspect the only stupidity in this case is asking people to believe there was no intent to insult Hindus.

A majority of the people of Malaysia are Muslim, but the nation contains a significant population of non-Muslims. In recent months there has been a growth in attempts to enforce sharia laws in the nation and this has impacted many non-Muslim groups. A US hip-hop band, Black Eyed Peas, in an effort to avoid problems at their concert since alcohol would be served, initially banned Muslims from attending. However, after consideration, they have lifted the ban. Organizers of the concert now say anyone 18 or older can attend.

A basic problem facing Muslims is that some drink alcohol and love attending rock concerts, but are prevented from doing what they wish because of fundamentalists. Muslims at some point have to reconcile ancient traditions with the modern world.

The Malaysian government went through the process of trying a 32 year-old model, Kartika Sari Dewi, for the horrific crime of having a drink of alcohol and then discovered they had a problem– there was not a caner in the house who had the skills to flog a woman! The Home Minister said, “I have to admit we do not have experience in this case… I cannot allow it if we do not have the expertise.” Sharia law outlines procedures for the caning of a woman, and for some reason there is no one in Malaysia with those skills.

I am quite willing to give a few whacks for the right price. I promise not to break any skin or even make the woman cry out in pain. I think Malaysia needs to create a corps of “painless caners” who are ready to jump into action and pretend they are caning. In this way, caning occurs, no one is hurt, and it sends a vivid message to those who want to have a beer the consequence of that evil act is performing in a Kabuki performance of pretend caning.

Malaysian model, Kartika San Dewi Shukam went out for a drink with friends and was arrested for violating Muslim law which forbids alcohol. A Sharia court sentenced the young mother to be flogged for her imudence in drinking liquor. Ms. Shukam is the first woman to be tried and found guilty under Muslim law against the use of alcohol. The flogging was to take place inside the prison, but she is seeking to have it made public. “If other Muslims can see me being canned, I will hope it will convicne them not to drink.”

Of course, there is another way to interpret the consequence of a public flogging. It might will persuade Muslim women who are being abused by their spouses to remain silent in the face of oppression if they believed speaking out for freedom could result in a public flogging. The message sent by this woman to her own daughter is to accept oppression meekly.

The decision by an Islamic court to impose a fine and caning to a Malaysian model for the crime of having a beer has shocked many people in the nation. Malaysia is a multicultural nation although a majority of its inhabitants are Muslim and this has resulted in creating a Sharia court system alongside the civil courts. Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno will receive six strokes because she consumed alcohol in eastern Pahang state last year. Amnesty International Malaysia executive director, Nora Murat made clear “the punishment of whipping is defined as torture and hence we should not in any way condone it. This is the wrong way to educate anyone about religion. When the sin is between her and God, there is always an option of being repentant. It’s up to God to decide on her faith, and not people.”

Islamic Mufti Harussani Zakaria responded the punishment was lenient and it “was meted out on her just to shame and educate her.” I gather there are Muslim clerics who actually believe a few strokes will end consumption of alcohol. We suggest they read a book about Prohibition in America to learn the idiocy of such a line of reasoning. If the goal is ending alcoholism, strokes of a cane do more to further this form of behavior than any other line of punishment. Perhaps, an education program might be a bit more successful.

There is an increasing tendency on the part of conservative fundamentalist clerics to issue edicts about aspects of modern life that bear no relation to anything about religion but say a great deal about their desire to impose upon people conformity in thinking. A religious order banning women from dressing like “tomboys” was bad enough, but now there is an edict forbidding them to engage in yoga because it is connected to the Hindu religion. A group of Malaysian women have concluded it is time to fight religion with religion. The Musawah(equality) project has emerged under which women will seek to take back their society from the clerics. They have no problem with the Koran but considerable with men who interpret the Koran to fit their preconceived ideas.

Zib a Mis-Hosseini argues “feminist Islamic scholarship is trying to unearth the facts that were there” and examine the legal tradition in a scholarly manner in order to confront clerics with facts not opinions. She believes Iranians were moving toward more liberal view of the Koran until Bush policies created fear and gave fundamentalists more power.

Unfortunately, there is a thousand years of male legalistic jargon which dominates the Muslim religion and it is doubtful if women in the near future can undo the power of the past.

Malaysia has been ruled by a Muslim majority which traditionally has ignored opposition parties and has never shown much interest in the rights of women. Human rights activist Elizabeth Wong who has stood up to the government suddenly has been confronted by a smear campaign which allegedly was carried out by a spurned lover. The man took pictures of Ms.
Wong while she was asleep and then showed the pictures to the media and they are all over the Internet. The human rights organization, Suaram(Voice of the People) believes the entire matter was orchestrated by members of the opposition to get rid of a voice which speaks loudly in favor of women’s rights. Although Ms. Wong announced her resignation, many organizations and journalists and politicians are urging her to reconsider the decision and remain in public life even though it might be personally embarrassing.

Mr. Swee Seng raised a key issue by suggesting ‘this case is an example of violence to women. It’s not the perpetrator that’s being punished here, but the victim.” One can only wonder what would be the reaction if a woman took pictures of her male lover and plastered them all over the media. Do nude pictures of male politicians count less than those of women. Stand up for your beliefs Ms. Wong, and the rest of us won’t even take a peek at the pictures!

The government of Malaysia has banned an ethnic Indian group which has been fighting to obtain equal rights for minorities in the Muslim controlled nation. Home Secretary Minister Syed Hamid Albar claimed the Hindu Rights Action Force was “detrimental to public order and security.” The organization has been working through peaceful means to have the government address legitimate concerns about discrimination against Indian and Chinese minorities in the country. According to the government directive anyone who joins the group can be prosecuted and face up to five years in prison.

The Indian group gained fame last November when it led tens of thousands of ethnic Indians in a massive protest against discrimination in fields like education, jobs and business opportunities which tend to give preference to Muslim members of society. Muslims can use force to destroy opposition groups, but as division arises within Muslim groups, there will be an outreach to Indians and Chinese to help a Muslim party gain power in parliament.

Anwar Ibrahim, the insurgent leader in Malaysia hopes to have a new coalition of parties united behind his candidacy by the end of the week. He is dealing with a government that has ruled for over forty years and there are still fears the incumbents may not wish to depart in a graceful manner. “We want the transition to be peaceful,” said Anwar. “That’s why we are not giving an ultimatum.” He refuses to provide names of members of the ruling coalition who have decided to come over to his group in hope that a new government can ensure democracy is practiced in their nation. Among the goals of a coalition government headed by Anwar would be involving members of minorities such as the Chinese and Hindus more actively in the political process.

During his political life, Anwar has previously been written off, particularly after the government tried to convict him on trumped up charges of sodomy. He has fought against every attempt to stifle voices seeking a more democratic society. Anwar promised that once in power, “there will be no witch-hunting. What we want is to rule without corruption, detention without trial, or theft of the people’s resources.”

The opposition alliance headed by Anwar Ibrahim is rather secretive concerning its next moves which might result in the overthrow of a coalition which has led the nation for over thirty years. Anwar reportedly is seeking to engage in discussions with Malalysia’s entrenched government in order to avoid possible violence when the change in government occurs. There is talk several defectors from the government’s coalition are prepared to go public with their names in the coming days. Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has pledged to thwart Mr. Anwar’s attempt to unseat the ruling National Front government.

The entire issue is confused by government efforts to arrest opponents on charges of creating turmoil and threatening national security. Malaysia’s Cabinet Minister in charge of legal affairs, Zaid Ibrahim, resigned in protest over the arrest of government opponents.

It is very uncertain as to whether the National Front will go quietly or whether it will decide to remain violently.